Remember back before E3, when Japanese newspaper Nikkei reported that Nintendo was all set to reveal a new iteration of their handheld? That rumor was quashed almost immediately by Nintendo, however it seems that the sneaky so-and-so’s were just biding their time before an official announcement could be made when it wouldn’t take any attention away from the Wii U.

The Nintendo 3DS XL was officially revealed via a Nintendo Direct news conference the other night (or the early hours of the morning here in the UK!) along with some further game details that we will also be bringing to you.

The first thing to say about the new model is that it will house the biggest screen yet seen on a Nintendo handheld, with the 3D top screen measuring in at a whopping 4.88 inches. The touch screen is also getting a boost, and at 4.18 inches it is significantly larger that the top screen on the current model. The bigger shell size will also house a beefed up battery, increasing the time between charges by up to 1.5 hours. An increased SD card of 4GB will also ship inside the device for free.

Although hosting a vastly increased screen size, the unit itself will only be around 40% bigger, so should still be portable in a similar way to the Vita, as in only if you carry it in a bag or have really large pockets! The system will be available in red or blue (as well as silver in Europe only, though for some unfathomable reason we don’t get an AC adapter included!). The one thing that is still missing which many fans had hoped for, is a second slide pad. It’s omission suggests that Nintendo really is steering away from its inclusion on the 3DS. Of course the slide pad pro wont be compatible with this model either, so it remains to be seen if a new version of the accessory will also be released.

The 3DS XL launches on August 19th in the US, at a price of $199.99. The European release meanwhile will be a few weeks earlier, on July 28th. Will you guys be picking one up, or are you still hung up over the second pad? Let us know below.